


The Representative

by Kyuubiluver342



Series: The Representative [1]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, Thor (Movies)
Genre: Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-20
Updated: 2018-06-20
Packaged: 2019-05-25 18:52:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,347
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14983382
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kyuubiluver342/pseuds/Kyuubiluver342
Summary: King Thor has taken the throne and wants to meet with Midgard to work on a peace treaty. When Midgard sends Tony Stark, the brothers are thrown in a world of chaos.





	The Representative

The Representative

King Thor was…bored. If he was going to be very honest with himself, he was bored out of his mind. After taking over the throne from his father, the great King Odin, he thought life would change. It would be exciting, making grand decisions and keeping the peace. Instead, he found it dreadfully boring. The only one who seemed to share his boredom was his dearly beloved brother, Loki. Standing by his side as his advisor, Loki was the only thing keeping him from running off half the time. Including now.

“My King, Midgard has finally sent an advisor to speak of a possible treaty.” A guard stated and Thor looked startled.

After Odin had stepped down, Thor had reached out to the one world that didn’t seem to bother with the rest of them. Midgard, an odd world full of odd creatures, had been defensive and concerned at first, refusing to even speak with Thor or any of his advisors before suddenly doing a complete 180. They had asked for some time to gather their people and talk among themselves and Thor had granted the request. That had been a while ago and they were just now sending an representative? Thor was a little miffed.

“Send them in.” Thor said as he sat up.

Loki let out a long sigh. He had no doubt his brother was annoyed they had taken so long to pick a representative and that would most likely cause issues from the start. He readied himself to try and smooth the waves between them. The doors opened and a single man stepped in. Both brothers watched, taking in everything they saw. He was not that tall, but walked like a king. Reflective glass covered his eyes and he wore an odd outfit of cloth. He took his dear sweet time walking towards them before stopping and smiling.

“King Thor?” he asked and Thor raised an eyebrow.

“And you are?” Thor replied.

The man reached up and removed the reflective glass from his face, revealing a young looking man with sharp eyes. 

“Name’s Anthony Stark, Your Highness, but please, call me Tony. I’ve been sent by Earth as a representative.” The man spoke quickly, but calmly.

His entire aura was bold, confident, but respectful. Loki found himself curious, Thor found himself bored.

“Very well then, Son of Stark. I found myself quite displeased with how long it took you to come. We approached your people almost four Earth moon cycles ago. Why did you take so long?” Thor demanded and Tony smiled.

“Well, Your Highness, I have to admit my people are a little slow on the uptake. To be honest, it took them almost two months to even accept you all showed up! As if it was one big joke or something. So that took a little while, but you are one hundred percent correct and that’s why I brought gifts as an apology for our slowness. I hope you will be kind about this whole ordeal?” Tony asked politely.

Loki was completely impressed. Not only was he playing up Thor’s ego, but Thor loved gifts and would be more willing to get over such things if he was given something nice. He could see Thor perk up a bit out of the corner of his eye and smirked. Bingo, the man had Thor down pat.

“Gifts? Well, I do not see why we cannot overlook this slight, right Loki?” Thor stated rubbing his chin.

“I agree, Brother.” Loki stated and Tony smirked.

“Excellent! Now, admittedly, I was not sure what my world could give you that your already didn’t have! I mean, how can Earth compare to such a grand world? But I do have to admit I am a bit of an inventor, so I tinkered around with some things and I think it might please the court.” Tony winked before waving his hand.

They watched in awe as two human like being appeared from the other side of the door. They walked until they stood just on either side of Tony, both holding an item in their hands. One was a book of ancient origins, one that Loki could feel himself being drawn to. The other was armor, beautiful forged and decorated that made Thor want to try it on immediately.

“To my right is a book for the King’s right hand man. I did a little research and found that this little thing here is a one of a kind book that most of my people can’t even begin to understand. A certain wizard gave it to me after some bargaining and I believe it might be of interest?” Tony explained and Loki longed to just grab it and hide away.

“And the armor? What makes you think it will be of us to me?” Thor stated, snapping Loki out of his own thoughts.

“Ah, see this is not just any armor. If you would like, Your Highness, I can demonstrate?” Tony stated.

Thor looked at Loki and Loki gave a nod. He didn’t see a reason not to.

“Great! Do you have a warrior or two I can borrow?” Tony asked excitedly.

Thor nodded and called for Lady Sif and Volstagg. The two came quickly and knelt before their king.

“Excellent! Now, just let me.” Tony stated as he pulled off his suit jacket.

He dropped it to the floor and had the bot help him put on the armor. Within seconds, it shrunk down to fit Tony’s slight build. Tony turned to the two warriors and smirked.

“Hit me.” He said holding out his arms.

Sif and Volstagg both looked towards Thor, who nodded slowly. Sif acted first and punched him square in the face, or would have if a shield had popped up around him. She slammed her fist into the shield and hissed, pulling her hand back. Volstagg grabbed his axe and attempted to hit Tony in the side, but the shield held fast. No matter how hard they hit him, nothing made it through.

“Enough!” Thor called, eyes locked on the armor with interest.

“Thank you both. I appreciate your help.” Tony said with a smile before the two warriors left.

He removed the armor and the bot took it back. He grabbed his jacket and slung it over his shoulder before turning back to the two.

“I hope that little show pleased His Highness? The armor is made out of completely indestructible alloy with a built in shield that changes the density of the shield depending on where it sense the hit coming from. I have thrown just about everything I have at this armor and nothing even dent it. Does this please you?” Tony asked and Thor found himself nodding.

“It does, I will admit.” Thor replied.

“Great, so I guess Earth is forgiven? For now at least?” Tony asked and Thor nodded.

“Yes, this show pleases me greatly, so I will overlook the slight for now.” Thor stated.

Loki snapped his fingers and some servants came forward to take the gifts. Loki watched with sad eyes as the book disappeared. Now it was time for business.

“Tell me, Son of Stark, why did they pick you to be their representative?” Loki asked curiously.

“Honestly? Because they are hoping you get sick of me and get rid of me.” Tony stated.

The two brother blinked, startled before Tony let out a laugh.

“Ah sorry, that was a joke. They sent me because they understand that this is more than just politics. You see my world is run by a bunch of bottom feeders who spent their whole lives building up an image of themselves to the public while doing so not so nice stuff behind the scenes. As far as we could figure out, that just wouldn’t fly here, so they sent me to test the waters. Two birds, one stone so to speak.” Tony explained.

“So if they sent you and you failed with your presents, they would understand that we cannot be bought so easily.” Loki summarized and Tony nodded.

“Got it in one.” Tony replied easily.

“And what would happen to you if you failed?” Thor asked curiously.

“Nothing worse than what they’ve done to me before. You know, the usual smear campaign about how I failed on purpose to make our world go to war with yours just to profit off of it. The usual.” Tony said waving his hand.

Thor and Loki were confused. What was he going on about exactly? Thor looked at Loki and Loki nodded.

“Anyway, let’s get down to business, ok? What is it that you want with Earth?” Tony asked seriously.

Thor leaned back in his chair, rubbing his chin. Loki hummed and then stepped forward.

“My brother has taken the throne after our father has stepped down. We have been attempting to make connections with planets that our father never bothered with. Midgard happened to be one of them.” Loki explained and Tony nodded idly.

“Midgard huh? Alright, interesting. So you just wanted to check and see that we were still around or something?” Tony asked.

“Not exactly. King Odin was a man who wished to see peace throughout the worlds and we wish to continue that ideal.” Loki replied and Tony paused.

“I see and how many worlds are we talking here?” Tony asked.

“Does it matter?” Thor replied bored.

“It does. You see, my planet, based on what I can see, is extremely behind the times on technology and such. This will be really concerning for my people and I can honestly see mass hysteria happening when they learn more about the other worlds.” Tony stated.

“Your people are that slow?” Thor asked and Loki winced.

That was not exactly what they wanted to say, but Tony seemed to let that roll right over him.

“In a way, yes. You have to understand, as far as we knew, we were alone in the universe. To find out we aren’t and that there are multiple worlds we didn’t know about that will most likely have technology we couldn’t even dream of will cause problems.” Tony stated.

“So you wish to hide us from your people?” Thor demanded.

“Nope, the exact opposite. We are not only going to show you off, but we are going to make you a hero.” Tony replied.

Loki paused, eying the man with interest. He was planning something, something big.

“Hero?” Thor perked up.

“Eeyup. The story will be simple, you didn’t forget about us, but you’ve been protecting us from the other worlds all this time in secret. You finally came forward since you are now in charge. We humans are really self-centered, bringing you to them as some sort of silent protector will make them more willing to listen.” Tony stated.

“So you wish to twist the truth?” Loki asked.

“In a way, yeah. I’m going to level with you guys.” Tony started.

The brothers looked at each other. What did that mean? Such an odd statement.

“Level with us?” Thor asked.

“Ah, it means like I am going to be honest with you, I’m going to put us on the same level.” Tony said.

“But you are so short.” Thor replied and Tony raised an eyebrow.

“Anyway, like I said, I want to be honest, but a lie for right now might be best. I mean you did, in a way, protect us from other planets right?” Tony stated.

“Our father was fond of Midgard, yes.” Thor answered.

“So, there we go. Not even really a lie in the long run of things.” Tony finished.

“And you wish to tell them?” Loki stated.

“I have…a way with the news that most don’t. I can work it so that people will be more willing to listen.” Tony replied.

Loki could see the advantages to this. By having one of their own tell them about Asgard and paint them in a good light would make it easier for them in the long run. He looked at Thor, who nodded.

“We will need time to discuss this.” Loki explained and Tony nodded.

“Of course! I wouldn’t expect anything else! Shall I go?” Tony asked and Thor nodded.

“For now, please return to your world. We will reach out when we have made a decision.” Thor commanded and Tony took a bow before smiling at them.

“Thank you for listening to me, Your Highness and I hope to hear from you soon.” Tony stated.

He slid the reflective glass back on his face, threw his jacket on and was led away. Loki watched him go and had a feeling this would be the start of something amazing. Loki went back to standing by his brother and they sat there in silence before Thor spoke.

“What do you think, brother?”

“Truly? I think he has a way with words.” Loki replied and Thor chuckled.

“And gifts. I saw the look on your face.” Thor teased and Loki huffed.

“Admittedly, I am intrigued by the book, but also the time and effort he put into such gifts.” Loki admitted.

“Oh?” Thor asked.

“Yes, he clearly realized that he would need a gift for us both and took the time to think of things we would truly be interested in. Armor for you, a rare antique for me. It spells out planning.” Loki explained.

“Good or bad planning?” Thor muttered.

“I am uncertain at this point, but based on his words, I would assume he is trying to make the best of the situation at hand.” Loki stated.

“Then we will have to see. I am curious now about this Son of Stark.” Thor settled.

“What do you think of his idea?” Loki asked.

“I am uncertain. Lying is never good, no matter what we will get out of it.” Thor paused.

“However, lying could work in our favor and keep an interdimensional incident from happening.” Loki pointed out.

“And if we are found out?” Thor questioned.

“Then I have a feeling this Son of Stark already has a back-up plan.” Loki finished.

“So we should continue down this path?” Thor asked and Loki nodded slowly.

“This path is the only one we have so far.” Loki sighed.

“I still do not feel right about lying.” Thor stated and Loki nodded, patting him on the shoulder.

“I know, brother, I know.” Loki finished.

A few days later, Tony Stark was back, called forth by the brothers. He walked in, wearing a different set of clothing than last time and followed by two of the human looking creatures.

“Your Highness, a pleasure to see you again.” Tony stated.

“Likewise, Son of Stark.” Thor said.

“We have made a decision about your offer.” Loki cut in.

“Oh? That was quick.” Tony stated, looking a little startled, but also relieved.

“We have agreed to go through with your plan, however we have some small adjustments.” Loki replied.

“Of course, every great plan has a few adjustments made to them.” Tony said.

He waved his hand and one of the creatures hands open, making a small blue screen appear. The brothers were startled, but curious.

“Can all Midgards do that?” Thor asked leaning in.

“Huh? Oh, no they aren’t Midgards. They are robots.” Tony replied and the brothers looked confused.

“Robots?” Loki asked.

“Yes, like I said the other day, I like to tinker with things. Robots are my specialty actually. These two beauties were hand made by yours truly.” Tony said smirking.

“You made these?” Loki said as he walked down and circled them.

His eyes took in every line, studying each one in turn. They were marvels, built strong and sturdy. He was curious as to what they could do.

“Eeyup, all by myself.” Tony was proud, very proud of his work.

“Fascinating.” Loki muttered.

“Can we get back to the task at hand, gentlemen?’ Thor called.

“Of course, now what were those adjustments?” Tony replied.

“First, we have all final say on how we are portrayed.” Loki started and Tony nodded.

“Of course, everything will be run by you first. I wouldn’t dream to do it any other way.” Tony retorted.

“Second, any and all issues will be brought to our attention. Anything that could impact Asgard and its people is our highest priority.” Loki stated as he continued to look over the robot.

“Never dreamt of hiding anything from either of you.” Tony replied.

“Third, any issues on your world will not affect ours.” Thor continued and Tony nodded.

“Finally, if Midgard cannot control itself around other planets and their people, they will not be protected by Asgard. They will have to suffer the consequences alone.” Loki finishing standing in front of Tony.

Tony paused, mind racing a bit before he nodded. That would take a little fudging on his end, but it was something he could work with.

“Very well, I think I can work with that.” Tony said simply.

“Excellent!” the king boomed and Tony winced a bit.

“Don’t have much of an inside voice, do you?” Tony muttered under his breath, making Loki smirk.

“Let us feast in celebration!” Thor boomed as he stood up. 

He came over and looped his arms around Tony’s and Loki’s shoulders, leading them to another room where food was starting to gather alongside people. Tony was a little thrown off by this sudden celebration, but quickly slid into his party persona. He was chit-chatting and smooth talking the group soon enough.

In one group with Thor, he boasted about his suits of armor and his many battles (“I mean I’m no great warrior, but I’d like to think I send people running with their tails between their legs when they hear the name Ironman.”). In another group with Loki, he talked politics and theater (“But honestly, without learning from history, does anyone really get anywhere is life? To learn from the past is to better understand the future as I always say.”) Tony seemed to be able to talk with anyone, to switch from topic to topic without pause. Before long, he had made friends with most of the Asgardians present. It was then Loki understood why Tony had been sent to Asgard.

“Quite astounding.” Loki stated to Lady Sif, who nodded.

“Agreed, he talks as if he has lived here, among us, for years. Volstagg has already taken to him.” Sif pointed out.

The man was practically hanging off Tony, laughing loudly to something Tony had said. It was clear from his circle that he had made many friends so far.

“He is quite the warrior from what I hear.” Loki muttered and Sif nodded.

“Admittedly, I am more likely to believe him after the display the other day. Even with all my strength, I could not get past his armor. It was impressive.” Sif replied.

“And I will admit, I have looked through the book he brought me and it is quite amazing. Spells in there that have been lost to time for eons.” Loki smirked.

He couldn’t help, but be excited by it. He could only hope he never had to use spells like those. They were quite nasty.

“And what of the King? Does he like this man?” Sif questioned.

“He has expressed great interest in the man. He hopes to keep him around for a while.” Loki replied.

Sif smirked and raised an eyebrow his way. They both knew that once the brothers were interested in the same thing, things got competitive. Loki just ignored her. The party lasted well into the night and Tony eventually had to go, so he bowed one final time to Thor and then left, heading back to Midgard. Loki moved to Thor’s side and watched him go.

“He’s already made some friends with many of your warriors.” Loki stated and Thor smiled.

“That is good. I have a feeling he will be quite helpful to us.” Thor stated proudly and Loki could only hope he was right.

Time passed and Tony proved to be a valuable asset to their side. He showed them his work with the media in his home world, showing the progress between people being fearful to people being rather accepting. Tony even had them talk with the head of each nation through a video feed. He showed them everything he had done and during that time, he had become a rather trusted friend.

He talked with Thor about great battles, the cosmos as a whole and listened to Thor’s complaints with other planets, offering a sympathetic ear and some advice. For Loki, they debated about anything and everything they could, learned from each other and sometimes just sat in silence, enjoying the company of the other. He seemed to find a second home in Asgard, staying in one of the many visitors rooms in the castle. Before long, its name was changed to Tony’s room and everyone in Asgard seemed to know it was there, but didn’t mention it. For two years, Tony worked hard and the brothers enjoyed having him there.

“A ball? You want to hold a ball?” Tony asked confused as he sat on the steps leading towards the throne.

“Not exactly. We don’t have balls in Asgard. We have feasts.” Thor stated.

Tony snorted, something most people wouldn’t dare to do in Thor’s presence, but Tony got a pass. He seemed to have a lot of those with the brothers.

“Is there dancing, food and stiff clothing? Then it’s a ball. Call it what you like though.” Tony said.

“We would like you to come.” Loki stated as he leaned against the wall and Tony smirked.

“Oh? Who requested me? Volstagg again?” Tony teased.

Tony hadn’t been allowed to go to any meeting between the worlds since they were still working on introducing Midgard to many of them, but now was the right time for it.

“No, we just believe it is time to introduce you to the rest of the representatives. We hope they will be more accepting.” Loki stated.

Tony looked at them, idly watching them before nodding. He stood up and dusted himself off.

“When is it?” he asked.

“A moon from now.” Thor replied.

“I will bring my best suit then.” Tony smiled and then they moved on with the conversation.

A moon later and Loki found himself surrounded by representatives. Some he knew for years, some who were new, but the one he wanted to see wasn’t there yet. Tony had yet to appear and it was a bit of a letdown. He looked up when he heard the horn.

“Presenting the honorable representative from Midgard, Anthony Stark.” The man called.

The doors opened and Loki’s smile almost lit up the room. Tony was dressed to the nines, in a dark suit with red accents. Red accents that seemed to be Thor’s particular favorite shade of red. He also noticed some gold accents that were his own personal signature. Loki moved forward and nodded.

“Welcome, Son of Stark. I was worried that you were late.” Loki stated.

“Not late, never late. Everyone else is simply early.” Tony said with a wink.

“Besides, King Thor is not here yet.” Tony pointed out.

Just then the horn blared and Thor stepped into the room. Many of the people around them bowed and Tony was quick to join. Thor walked to his throne and stood there.

“Welcome friends and allies. I, King Thor, Son of Odin, welcome you all to Asgard. You have all come here to meet your fellow representatives and reacquaint yourself with old friends. So let this party begin!” Thor said, as cheers erupted.

The party got started and so did Tony. He chatted with everyone, talked and made friends with just about anyone he could. He drank, talked and bonded, but the party was soon rocked with some yelling. Two representatives were really going at it, yelling and screaming at each other. Clearly they were drunk, but there was more to it than that. Tony listened intently, curious about the fight that no one seemed to get in the middle of.

“You wouldn’t know a crater if it bit you!” one creature, purple skinned slug creature with four arms.

“Well maybe if your people didn’t eat all your food you wouldn’t be going extinct!” A large fur covered creature snapped back. 

Tony watched them go for a while, eying them with interest. Loki stood by his side, bored.

“Ignore them, the Urgeces and the Myrtncts have been fighting for years.” Loki stated.

“Why is that?” Tony asked.

“Something about an ancient treasure that was lost. No one knows what actually happened to it, but it’s been eons and they can’t let it go.” Loki said shaking his head.

Tony nodded his head and then stepped forward.

“Gentlemen, gentlemen, please. Do we really need the harsh words? We are here to celebrate!” Tony said jovially.

“As if a Midgardian could understand.” The Urgeces (purple slug) said scuffing.

“I don’t see why I can’t. I mean we are all here in the same universe right? Why not get along?” Tony asked.

“Because some people are thieves!” the Myrtnct snapped and the Urgeces looked like he was about to throw a fist when Tony coughed.

“Come now, do either of you even remember what the fighting is about? Like honestly, do you even know what this item looked like?” he asked curiously.

“It was an orb that glittered like stars!” Urgeces stated.

“I think not! It was a cube that was as black as a black hole!” the other replied.

Tony looked at them both, sipping his drink idly. The two argued back and forth about the item before finally they both had to stop.

“Are you sure you two are even talking about the right item? One of you is saying it could defy the laws of physics and gravity. The other is claiming it was drop like a rock. One is saying it was an orb, the other a cube. My friends, I honestly have to wonder if this is even the same item.” Tony stated.

“Well, even if we don’t know what it looks like, they stole valuable resources from my planet!” the Urgeces yelled and the other gasped in shock,

“We did no such thing, your people sold it to us fair and square! It’s not our fault you didn’t realize how much the material was worth!” Myrtnct snapped back.

“So what is the material for? What does it do?” Tony asked curiously.

“It was very important!” the Urgeces stated.

“Yes, very, very important.” Myrtnct agreed.

“Ok, but what is it good for?” Tony asked again.

The two creatures looked at each other, before looking away. Neither of them could answer the question.

“So you sold it to them because your people didn’t know what to do with it, and you bought it from them for a cheap price thinking you knew what to do with it, but never actually did anything with it?” Tony pointed out.

The two looked startled, trying to explain themselves, but in the end, couldn’t deny it.

“Then, might I suggest an idea? I have worked with many materials in my time. I am sure I kind find a use for this material and maybe, just maybe we can come up with a plan for such a thing that will benefit you both. After all, I am sure these materials have some sort of use.” Tony exaplined.

The two aliens looked at him and then at each other. 

“Well, I don’t see why not.” Myrtnct muttered crossing his arms.

“Yes, that seems to work for both of us.” Urgeces replied.

“See? We can all be friends here! I promise to work with you so that you both get equal rights to it ok?” Tony said and with a shake of each of their limbs, the two aliens seemed to have calmed down and be able to go on their way.

Tony was quite pleased and Loki was seeing a side of the man he really liked. Tony had worked to two as easily as a musician playing his instrument. Tony had even managed to crave out a little place for himself in the deal. Loki walked over and smirked.

“Quite impressive. I have seen those two come to blows before and never have I seen anyone be able to work them so affectively.” Loki said.

“I’m sure if you wanted to, you could have worked it just as easily.” Tony replied.

“Hm, maybe, but Thor has ordered me not to get too involved with other planet’s issues.” Loki said as they started to walk around.

“Well, I saw an opportunity to make some new friends and I took it.” Tony smirked.

Loki smirked back and was feeling a little more excited. Tony was stirring things up that had been stale for years. Loki could see chaos was just under the surface and he was excited. They met with Thor as they walked around, chatting with each representative in turn. The night was starting to turn and the party was starting to draw to a close. Representatives were starting to leave, but Tony had promised to stay the night. That was when Tony’s wrist started to beep. He moved his sleeve and his watch was lighting up, making Tony frown.

“Your Highness, I think I might have to cut this party short. It seems some sort of attack is happening on Midgard.” Tony stated and he sounded nervous.

“Of course, please be safe, my friend.” Thor stated and Tony smiled.

Tony was quick to leave and the brothers found themselves a little worried. The man had seemed upset about something and they could only hope he would be ok. They wouldn’t know until a few weeks later.

Thor was sitting on his throne, bored to tears as he sat there. Loki stood not far away, idly thumbing through his new book that Tony had brought him when the doors opened. Tony stood there, looking a little worse for wear. The bags under his eyes were dark and he looked very thin, something that was clear from his tight fitting suit.

“Son of Stark? What in Odin’s name happened to you?” Thor asked worriedly.

“Ah, just a little mishap, nothing more, Your Highness.” Tony stated with a smile, but he looked so tired.

Loki moved closer, closing his book with a snap. He moved in close, eyes narrowed as he circled the man with a frown. There was something there, something just under the surface. Tony looked nervous, watching him with wary eyes.

“Loki? Brother?” Thor asked.

“Something is wrong with you. Something magical has happened.” Loki stated coldly as he stopped before Tony.

Tony swallowed hard and took a step back. He looked wary, like he was about to bolt.

“I think you’re seeing things.” Tony joked a little.

“I am not. My own magic is reacting to someone else’s magic that is still attached to you like a leech. It is vile magic, one I would not even use myself.” Loki explained and Thor looked thunderous, making the sky darken outside.

Tony looked nervous, wary and concerned, mostly about his own safety. He blinked and between those seconds, he saw flashes. Faces of agony and fear, hatred and rage, these faces haunted him as they had for the past several weeks. Ever since he went toe to toe with the amateur magician a few weeks ago, sleep had become non-existent unless he passed out and even that was filled with horror and fear. Just blinking had become a chore and there was a part of Tony that wanted to beg for help.

“I am fine. I promise.” Tony said moving back.

Loki didn’t believe him one bit, didn’t believe that he was ok and wasn’t about to let it go. He grabbed Tony and held him by his arms, eyes staring into the magic before him. 

“What a vile trick. Son of Stark, this magic is killing you. I can see it. You are wasting away and if you do not let me do something, you will die.” Loki stated.

Tony swallowed, that was not at all good to hear. He longed to ask for help, but the spell, the spell refused to let him. He could only shake his head no. Loki hissed and without warning, Tony felt something wrap around him like a boa contractor. His eyes seemed to bulge out of his head and he let out a gasp. He could feel what he guessed was Loki’s magic reaching out to the magic inside him, fighting with it. The foreign magic fought back like a cornered animal, vicious and cruel it attacked back.

Loki felt the magic react and smirked, it had no chance against magic like his. His own magic wrapped around the magic and strangled it until the magic shattered like a glass window against a storm. It died and faded away, leaving Tony heaving, gasping for air. Loki pulled back a bit and realized maybe what he had done had not been a good thing. Tony was shaking, face white like a sheet and his eyes were glazed. 

“Son of Stark?” Thor asked as he stepped down from his throne.

He had watched it all in awe. He knew better than to get between Loki and magic, but he had to worry that this mortal was not used to such power. He was worried that Loki was pushing too far and when Tony didn’t answer him, only continued to stand there, heavily breathing, he became concerned.

“Bring me a healer!” he roared, startling Loki out of his own thoughts.

“Son of Stark?” Loki called, but the man did nothing.

A small group soon entered the room and Loki was pulled away by his brother. Tony was left to them, led away to be taken care of by their healers. Loki and Thor stood there, watching and wondering.

“Brother, did I do the right thing?” Loki asked.

“I do not know, brother. But Son of Stark is strong, he will be ok.” Thor said, though he did not sound certain.

The head healer appeared some time later, looking tired, but calm. The brother were directed towards Tony’s room, but were stopped outside the door.

“My king, there is something I wished to bring to your attention before we step inside. This man, Son of Stark, has an odd device in his chest that we can’t remove. When we attempted to, he attacked us and since then, we have not touched it, but it is quite…unnerving.” The healer stated and they nodded before going inside.

Tony lay on the bed, covered mostly by a large blanket from the waist down. He looked so peaceful and yet the item in his chest so clearly did not belong. It was so odd to look at, this circular thing. It glowed like a firefly, casting a sickeningly blue glow on Tony’s face and chest. Thor was struck by how big it was, Loki was struck by the fact that, from what the healers could see, it sat very far in his chest, taking space away from his heart and lungs. Loki sat by his side and looked at Thor, looking very concerned.

“What is going on? Is this common on Midgard?” Thor hissed and Loki shook his head.

“I doubt that very much. It seems he is full of surprises, even now.” Loki muttered.

Tony opened his eyes sometime later, looking confused and disorientated. He goes to sit up and both brother place a hand on his shoulders, pushing him back down.

“Thor? Loki?” Tony slurred.

Tony was clearly out of it, he never called them by name, but Loki could admit he liked how their names came out of his mouth. The brothers’ eyes locked and Thor nodded, stepping back a bit. The next few questions needed a bit of tact that Thor just didn’t have, it was Loki’s territory.

“Son of Stark, what happened to you?” Loki asked softly.

Tony was dazed, out of his mind and tired. So very, very tired. He just wanted to sleep, but something about sleep was bad. Tony didn’t want to sleep, but he couldn’t figure out why. The question brought an image of a young woman with angry eyes come forth and he whined.

“Some angry bitch that knows her way around a spell.” He muttered rubbing his eyes with a sigh.

Loki snorted and Thor sighed loudly. That was not exactly what they were asking about, but it did explain a lot.

“And you did not come to us for help?” Loki asked.

“I didn’t know how. I was worried it could be passed on or something. Didn’t want that on my shoulders as well.” Tony muttered.

“And the device in your chest?” Thor asked.

Tony’s head snapped up and then looked down. When he saw his shirtless chest and his Arc reactor, he groaned loudly and cursed. He covered his eyes with his hands and he just doesn’t want to look at either of them. Loki places a hand on his arm, rubbing gently.

“You shouldn’t have seen this.” Tony stated.

“But we did.” Loki replied just as quickly.

“What happened, Son of Stark?” Thor asked softly and Tony laughed humorlessly. 

“My sins came back to bite me in the ass, that’s what happened. Karma finally got her revenge.” Tony explained and really it explained nothing.

“That tells us nothing.” Loki stated.

“Then you know nothing. It’s none of your business. It happened years ago.” Tony snapped.

The brothers were startled, this was the first time Tony had shown any kind of anger towards them. Loki had to wonder if his secret being revealed had shaken Tony to the core. His anger was just him trying to cover his fear.

“Watch yourself, Son of Stark.” Thor demanded coldly.

“I do. Every day, I watch myself and watch my back because no one else is doing it.” Tony replied sharply.

“So this happened years ago, but you still carry the scar of it every day. Does that not make it a current problem?” Loki asked, trying to cut the tension.

“A current problem I have a handle on, thanks.” Tony said.

“Not exactly. It’s poisoning you, or it did once.” Loki said with a shrug.

“What?” Thor demanded and Tony looked startled and then looked down at his arm.

“You!” Tony ripped his arm away, glaring.

“You cannot blame me for checking. You are clearly not telling us the truth. That thing poisoned you at one time, I can still see it moving through your veins in small particles. At one point, it must have been flowing through your veins as much as blood itself.” Loki stated.

Tony grit his teeth and looked away. Thor looked horrified, wondering how someone could still be alive after so long.

“So why do you have it?” Thor asked.

“It is holding something in place. Bits of material, thin pieces of metal that are in his body that should have shred your heart and lungs to pieces by now. Instead, they are fixed in place.” Loki explained and Tony nodded.

“It’s like a big magnet, there to keep me alive.” Tony stated.

Thor shook his head, looking absolutely bewildered, but understanding that this was serious. Loki locked eyes with him and shook his head slightly, they would talk later about it. For now, they had other issues to talk about.

“Son of Stark, the magic that woman used on you was old. Very old. It was almost completely done its job when I got to it. You could have died.” Loki stated coldly and Tony just looked away.

“That’s what she wanted though. For me to suffer and then die. That was the whole point.” Tony muttered as he sat up and leaned against the wall.

“But why? Would could you have done to deserve such a punishment?” Thor demanded.

“I killed her parents.” Tony replied and the brothers look startled.

“Explain.” Thor demanded.

“It’s a long story.” Tony sighed.

“We have time.” Loki piped in.

“You honestly want to hear this shit?” Tony questioned.

“You have spent quite a bit of time listening to our stories. I believe it’s time for you to give back.” Loki stated and Tony huffed angrily.

“Listen, it’s a lot of fucked up shit you don’t need to worry about.” Tony snapped.

“But, we do. You have magic on your planet. Magic can be very destructive if not kept under control. Besides, I am very curious about how everything you are came to be.” Loki said siting back in his chair.

Tony looked away for a while, seemed to be thinking, but then Thor leaned in and placed a hand on his shoulder. Tony looked at Thor, who smiled and Tony nodded.

“It started with my father, Howard. He made his fortune by making weapons for the US Army. He made it his life goal to make bigger and better weapons, dragging me into it when I was old enough to hold a screwdriver. My father was a genius and I was born a genius, which meant I was expected to keep up and grow the Stark fortune, so I did. I made every weapon that came to mind, no matter how destructive. War in my world was always going on, so it was a big business. I thought I was helping, but people apparently thought otherwise.” Tony started.

He paused and idly tapping the thing in his chest. Loki frowned, remembering Tony doing that some times and wondering if it was a nervous tick of his. 

“I was showing off my newest invention when my group was attacked. I was taken, but before I was, I was hit by shrapnel from one of my own weapons. This Arc Reactor was put in to keep the metal from shredding my chest to pieces. For days, I was trapped and then I finally got out. I later learned an old friend of my father’s had been selling my weapons on the side. I guess one of those weapons must have killed her family and so she came after me for it.” Tony said softly.

“But isn't coming after you is like coming after the blacksmith for making the blade that killed her family?” Thor asked confused.

“It doesn’t matter. I’m an easy figure to hate for many of these people. Just a face they can put their anger towards.” Tony shrugged.

“So the sentence you told us when we first met was true. They did send you here hoping we would kill you.” Loki stated and Tony nodded.

“I don’t have many fans, but enough to keep me where I am.” Tony said.

“So what happened to the witch?” Thor asked and Tony smiled.

“Got one over on her. She should be locked up somewhere, but who knows. She could probably break out tomorrow.” Tony admitted.

“So then you should stay here until you are sure she won’t get out.” Thor said with a nod.

Tony looked startled and Loki just sighed, rubbing his forehead. They had talked about keeping Tony around, but Thor had just overstepped himself it seemed.

“You want me to stay full time? That’s asking a lot. And you haven’t even taken me to dinner yet.” Tony teased.

Thor looked confused and Loki snorted as he covered his laugh.

“But, we’ve feasted together?” Thor stated.

“Brother, that is not what he means.” Loki stated.

“Oh, then what do you mean?” Thor asked and Tony just shook his head.

“I’ll tell you when you are older.” Tony said before looking at Loki, ignoring Thor’s anger.

“So is that a yes?” Loki asked and Tony winked.

“Only if I get to see you shirtless now that you’ve seen me.” Tony teased and Loki smirked.

That sounded like a challenge to him and he was more than interested in showing off.


End file.
